Non-pneumatic resilient tire
AssigneeConception et Developpement Michelin S.A.
InventorsDaniel Laurent, Antonio Delfino, Henri Hinc
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A non-pneumatic resilient tire which derives its capacity to bear a load from laminated elements capable of supporting bending moments. The laminated elements include a stack of resilient sheets superposed and separated by a layer of rubber adhering to the latter, forming a beam capable of undergoing bending stress.
Claims59
A resilient non-pneumatic tire having an axis of rotation and a tread carried by a resilient bearing structure radially situated inside said tread and defining, at least partially, an inner cavity of revolution, said bearing structure comprising:
- a zone of attachment radially on the side of the axis of rotation for the locking of said bearing structure on means of connection to a hub, and said zone of attachment being axially placed between lateral limits of said bearing structure, said attachment zone being designed for contacting said means of connection to a hub, said means of connection to a hub being designed to form a rigid assembly,
- a plurality of support elements, extending essentially crosswise, placed between the zone of attachment and the tread, said support elements being juxtaposed circumferentially and distributed all around the circumference, the support elements being fitted in said zone of attachment, each support element including a bundle of superposed resilient base pieces, separated by a layer of elastomer adhering to each of the base pieces, so as to form a beam capable of undergoing bending stress,
- an interconnecting structure between the support elements arranged so that a portion of a radial stress of a support element is transferred to the adjacent support elements circumferentially, while allowing differences in displacement between adjacent support elements.
A rim including mounting means for receiving and locking a resilient non-pneumatic tire having an axis of rotation and a tread carried by a resilient bearing structure radially situated inside said tread and defining, at least partially, an inner cavity of revolution, said bearing structure embracing a zone of attachment radially on the side of the axis of rotation, for the locking of said bearing structure on means of connection to a hub, said means of connection to a hub forming a rigid assembly, said zone of attachment being placed axially between lateral limits of said bearing structure, and said zone of attachment being circumferentially slotted, so that the tire presents two connecting ribs capable of being axially displaced in relation to each other, said rim comprising:
- two flanges, each serving as a seat for one of the two ribs,
- a profiled shape which cooperates with said flanges in order to grip said ribs and to lock them on the rim.
In the manufacture of a resilient non-pneumatic tire having an axis of rotation and including a bearing structure having a median plane perpendicular to the axis of rotation and defining an inner cavity of revolution, the bearing structure including a plurality of support elements distributed all around the circumference, each support element being placed roughly crosswise, each support element being a laminated element containing a stack of resilient sheets superposed radially, a method in which the constituents required for making the non-pneumatic tire are placed on a destructible support, said method comprising:
- bringing a section of the bands on the support,
- bending the section to make it follow exactly the shape of the support,
- locking the ends of the section,
- repeating the preceding steps until obtaining the stacking desired.
A resilient non-pneumatic tire having an axis of rotation and essentially having a tread carried by a resilient bearing structure radially situated inside said tread and delimiting, at least partially, an inner cavity of revolution, said bearing structure comprising:
- a zone of attachment radially on the side of the axis of rotation, for the locking of said bearing structure on means of connection to a hub, said means of connection to a hub forming a rigid assembly,
- a plurality of support elements, extending essentially crosswise, placed between the zone of attachment and the tread, said support element being juxtaposed circumferentially and distributed all around the circumference, each support element containing a bundle of superposed resilient base pieces, separated by a layer of elastomer adhering to each of the base pieces, so as to form a beam capable of undergoing bending stress,
- an interconnecting structure between the support elements, arranged so that a portion of a radial stress of a support element is transferred to the adjacent support elements circumferentially, while allowing differences in displacement between adjacent support elements,
- said support elements and interconnecting structure being designed for a zero pressure operation of said tire.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.